


The Fall

by IcyAndTheFrostBites



Series: Icy's Carmen Sandiego Collection [3]
Category: Carmen Sandiego (Cartoon 2019)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Gray's POV on the whole scene, Takes place in Episode 2, different point of view
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-22
Updated: 2019-04-22
Packaged: 2020-01-23 13:16:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18550531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IcyAndTheFrostBites/pseuds/IcyAndTheFrostBites
Summary: Graham did not frighten easily. He was made of tougher stuff than that, anyone would say that.And yet?And yet, Black Sheep had appeared and tackled him, sending them spiraling out of the plane.





	The Fall

**Author's Note:**

> I did this instead of sleeping the last two nights. Well, the research portion of it. Mostly because I was like, how is this even possible? And... yeah, not really possible through physics. Well, they would both live, but someone would be severely injured, you know?
> 
> There's... yeah. Thank god it's fiction.

Graham did not frighten easily. He was made of tougher stuff than that, anyone would say that.

Being chased by the police? Easy. Being shot at? Not a problem. Dangling by the leg and an electrical cord over a stage full of people while a performance is going? Who, in his profession, hasn’t done that at least **_once_ **?

Jumping out of a plane?

It should have been easy. He should have had no problem. VILE had gone over basic training – even going as far to make sure they knew what to do in emergency situations. Plus the experience of having gone at least twenty times in the past. (An uncle he wasn’t particularly close to was an instructor.)

He kicked Sheena – no, Tigress – out of the plane with such ease, it felt like spreading Vegemite on toast. The others were far ahead of her, just as eager as he was – as he had been. He could already spot their unfolding parachutes.

And yet?

And yet, Black Sheep had appeared and tackled him, sending them spiraling out of the plane.

His heart almost leapt out of his throat. Not because she had joined them on their first ever caper as VILE graduates, oh no. Honestly, a part of him was **_ecstatic_ ** she was there. She was going to see him in action!

But his heart almost escaped because he almost lost his grip on her.

Unlike he and the others, she was just dressed in her uniform – the simple olive-green and khaki outfit they gave to everyone – and there wasn’t a backup parachute for her to use. She had to totally rely on him.

“Don’t let go,” she said, her voice almost inaudible through the wind. But the panic in her eyes made him pull her close. Her teeth chattered in his ear and she was shivering.

How was he going to get the both of them through this? At this point, with her added weight, they were falling faster. The chute could handle her weight as well as his, but the falling portion? Not good.

Okay, what could he do? Increase resistance. Easy enough.

“Hold on tight,” he said. She strengthened her grip around his neck. He tapped one of her thighs. “Legs too.”

He felt her legs cinch his waist. Once he was certain she was secure, he flipped them around so she was facing down. He thought he heard a little sound escape her, but with the wind rushing past his ears and the blood insistently pounding he wasn’t certain. He kept one arm tightly around her.

He didn’t know if this was even going to work. He just had to… trust his instincts, he supposed. He relaxed his body and counted to three, pulling the release cable.

There was a jolt that almost dislodged her – which made her grip him more tightly – but it wasn’t what he thought it would be. Looking up to the chute, he saw the cables and toggle had been tangled with the chute.

Okay, this could work in his favor. A slower decent meant less of a shock which meant he wouldn’t lose Black Sheep. Or get them both injured. The smart thing, if she hadn’t been free falling and clinging to him, would be to cut the lines. With her? Well, he was going to have to chance it.

“Hold on,” he said into her ear, removing his arm from around her.

He got to work, untwisting the lines and the cables from the toggle. Slowly, it came undone and increased the resistance. There was another jolt when the parachute fully expanded, but it wasn’t terrible.

When he was certain they were stable enough, he looked down to Black Sheep. She was still shivering and clinging to him, but she was looking around.

He clenched his jaw, gripping the handles through his gloves as he steered them a little bit away from where the others were landing. He navigated them down to the ground, hiding them behind the ruins so the others wouldn’t see her.

He started running in the air a short way from the ground so they wouldn’t land so hard. The jolt to he feet made his legs buckle slightly, but they were both fine.

That was what mattered.

When he was able to stand upright, he helped her onto her feet before disentangling himself from the gear.

“Are you out of your mind?” he said through clenched teeth, now that she would finally be able to hear him without any difficulty. “You just your safety, and my entire criminal career at risk!”

He looked up over the ruins to the others. Tigress was having difficulty with the parachute. It landed on top of her, and the others weren’t being helpful. He had to fight the urge to crack a smile.

“What will the faculty do when they discover that you decided to tag along on our mission?”

The words stung **_him_ ** a little, but her next ones? They were worse.

“Who cares?” she said, her voice too nonchalant for his liking. (I do. I do. I do. **_I do!_ ** I care, you stupid girl.) “I’ll be long gone.”

“Crackle!” Tigress said, her voice carrying a long way. No doubt she’d draw attention to them. “Let’s move.”

He started towards them, halting and gripping her shoulders to make her look at him.

“Stay here,” he said, pleading her with his eyes. “I mean it.”

She wouldn’t listen to him, he knew, but he felt like he had to say it.

Looking back on it, he could have done a lot more. But letting her go free? That was a vain attempt on his part. He wished he hadn’t been so stupid. Maybe then he wouldn't have lost her.

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, I had to bs the majority physics of the jump because it is not physically possible for them both to have fallen and no one getting injured, maimed, or killed. You can't [Point Break](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yeqtZrjhcA) this kind of thing. And a [Mr. Bill](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQRicHzIFz0) is different than only one person having a chute. What about tandem? People are always strapped together. This is for safety purposes.
> 
> There's actually a [website dedicated to researching free falls](http://www.greenharbor.com/fffolder/ffresearch.html). And then there's the [_Worst-Case Scenario_](https://www.quirkbooks.com/book-categories/worst-case-scenario#) series. (Information no longer available for free for those who remember their golden days.) These two honestly helped the most.
> 
> I'm not sure if the execution of it is accurate, but I did look into videos of people untangling themselves midair. It happens, and it was all I could think of.
> 
>  
> 
>   
> 
> 
> Hahaha. Just kidding. I'd really like to know how possible it is. Seriously.


End file.
